help! bottom edge

[mcnice]

what are u guys doing when it s about shortening a traditional? mine is from ebay so needs adjustment.
i think normal sewing machines can t get the bottom as it is, when bought from the kiltmaker.

at the moment my kilt has the too long part pleated to the inside, which is not a problem, but on th elong run would rather have just an alternative...

[Jimmy Carbomb]

Okay... I'll take a shot at this.

McNice, do you have ANY tailors in your area? If yes, then ask them about making a hem to your desired length. DO NOT try to do this yourself.

The tailor (or seamstress) will be able to determine whether the hem needs to be trimmed, sewn and pressed... or just hemmed and pressed.

Take the kilt in to the place, and let them give you an honest assessment and price.

[mcnice]

my mother did already hem the kilt and she s my usual seamstress. thx mom ;)
so with her machine i think wasn t possible to trim the bottom and i thought the material could only get trimmed by the weavers...
so thanks for ur answer i ll see a tailor.

[Barb T]

Hi McNice

Just posted this to another part of the board:

----

Lots of kilts, even heavy weight ones, have hems. If done properly and pressed well, no one is going to notice that your kilt has a hem. In order to do a proper job, you really need to take out the stitching at bottom of the apron and underapron edges, turn up a hem, and _then_ re-stitch the apron and underapron edges. Also, the hem isn't turned up evenly everywhere. The underapron is turned up about an inch more than the rest of the kilt at the very left hand edge, tapering to the normal hem depth about 9" from the underapron edge. This keeps the corner of the underapron from sagging below the apron edge and showing. Also, the inside point of the very first pleat next to the apron edge gets turned up an additional 1/2" or so, tapering to the normal hem depth where the pleat shows, again so that the point won't hand down and show behind the apron. If that isn't making sense, let me know, and I'll explain it another way. Once the hem is turned up and stitched, be sure to baste the pleats closed before pressing so that you don't muck up the pleats when you press them. Be sure to press both sides of the kilt.

But, before you go to all the trouble to make a hem in your kilt, make sure that it really is too long. Lots of people wear their kilts too low, and they seem too long but really aren't. The center of the buckle of your kilt should be at your true waist (roughly your belly button), and the top edge of the kilt extends _above_ your waist by about 2" in a standard kilt. So, a kilt properly worn is buckled high and tight. If you buckle it on low and loose, it can hang down as much as 2" farther than it's meant to. So, you may be able to save yourself some trouble if you check first! If you have it on properly, the bottom of the kilt should come to the top of your knee cap when you're looking straight ahead.

Cheers!

Barb

[mcnice]

thanks barb, i ve posted my thoughts on the other thread u refered.

just to say the kilt in questions is a casual and some of its pleats are wandering. i don t know if this soft wool material (medium weight) will stop wandering when it gets a selvedge.
as u proposed, i ll have a good ironing session... as i take no riskk at founding the paraffin to try it.